-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Sebastian Vettel became Formula One 's youngest world champion in a five-way shootout at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in November 2010 , and the German needs just one point in Japan this weekend to seal a second world crown .

Vettel 's dominant form in 2011 has led him to victory in nine of 14 races so far , and the 24-year-old is on the brink of becoming the ninth driver to secure back-to-back titles in the championship 's 61-year history .

If he does so , the celebrations will come with four races to go -- putting Vettel narrowly behind his legendary compatriot Michael Schumacher , who set the standard in 2002 when he clinched the fifth of his record seven world titles with six of the 17 races remaining .

Vettel will also become the youngest double world champion , beating the 25-year-old Fernando Alonso 's feat with Renault in 2005-06 .

Latest F1 standings after Singapore GP

Former Toro Rosso driver Vettel needs to earn a 10th-place finish , or higher , in one of the season 's five remaining grands prix to complete his triumph .

McLaren 's 2009 world champion Jenson Button , second in the drivers ' standings , is the only driver who still has a mathematical chance of preventing Red Bull celebrations on Sunday .

British racer Button would need the unlikely combination of Vettel to score no further world championship points , while also winning the year 's five remaining races .

Despite Vettel knowing he could win the title with an uncharacteristically low finish -- he has finished outside of the top two in just one race this year -- the one-time Sauber driver insisted he is fully focused on claiming another maximum 25-point haul .

`` Obviously there 's still a chance for Jenson to win the title and for me not to win the title , '' Vettel told Formula One 's official website . `` Even if it 's only one point .

`` The moment you decide to fly , sooner or later there 's a moment when you will come down as well . You have to , nothing flies for ever . I think it would be wrong to think like that at this stage , the target going into this weekend is not to get one point , in a way it 's not to win the championship , the target is to do our best .

`` Yes , there would be reason to celebrate , even if we finish tenth , but it would n't be the same so we try to race as usual and we try to get the best out of ourselves . ''

When asked what the secret behind his success was , Vettel 's answer was simple : `` Probably a word that is not at first sight that fancy , consistency . And in this respect we have had a terrific year so far and I hope it will not desert us for the final races . ''

The climax to the 2011 season is in stark contrast to last year 's finale , when Vettel leaped from third position heading into the final race at the Yas Marina Circuit to overhaul teammate Mark Webber and Ferrari 's two-time world champion Fernando Alonso to claim glory .

`` Going into the last race and being some points behind is a completely different situation to leading the standings by a gap of 124 points , '' said Vettel , who was 15 points adrift of first-place Alonso heading into November 's final race in the gulf kingdom .

`` What I try to do is not to listen to all these statistics and simply focus on this race , as I always do with every single race -- which has served me well . I have learned from the mistakes that I made in the past and it would be foolish to make them again , so do n't wait to see them here .

`` It is not embarrassing making mistakes if you learn from them , but it would be embarrassing making the same mistakes all over again . ''

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Button was cautiously optimistic regarding his chances in Suzuka , but admitted the circuit is one which would suit Red Bull 's RB7 car .

`` I think it will be a great race for everyone , '' said Button , who recently signed a new deal with English-based McLaren . `` In the last few races , I think we 've shown that we have extremely good pace and that we 've been the team most able to take the fight to Red Bull .

`` On paper , I think it 's a circuit that will suit the Red Bulls , particularly in the high-speed sweeps that make up the first sector of the track , but I certainly do n't think people should under-estimate our package .

`` We showed at Spa that we have a car that 's very effective in high-speed corners . We 've also improved our straight-line speed and we have a more efficient rear wing for qualifying , so I think we 're feeling positive about the weekend . ''

If Vettel fails to clinch the championship this weekend , the title race would roll on to the Korean Grand Prix on October 16 .

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Sebastian Vettel can clinch a second world title at Sunday 's Japanese Grand Prix

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The German holds a 124-point lead over Jenson Button in the drivers ' standings

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The Red Bull driver is poised to become the youngest double world champion in F1 history